Understanding the Risk of Exposure to Occupational Hazards and Safety Measures for Nigerian Workers

Abstract:

To
have a vibrant and productive economy in any nation, it becomes imperative that
the health and safety of her workers must be given priority attention by the
worker himself, employer and the government. Because of the increasing
industrialization, infrastructural developments and modernization taking place
in developing countries particularly like Nigeria. These factors have not only
increased the job opportunities in and around the country but at the same time
increased the incidence of morbidity and mortality of workers.

And
so it is important that the worker has an in depth knowledge and understanding
of the nature of the job with regards to the health hazard exposures peculiar
to the job and the safety measures to be undertaken even before accepting the
job. More so, safety officers, factory and industrial managers etc. need to
appreciate the need to know all that is involved in the job in order to make
the workplace a safe and conducive one for the worker and achieve high
productivity.

This
paper attempts to highlight a lot of occupational hazards that occur among both
the formal and informal Nigerian workers, reasons for their occurrences, safety
measures, lapses on the part of the employer and reveals the laxity on the part
of government to enact and enforce occupational safety and health laws.